According to the latest 2024 Developer Survey Report released by Stack Overflow, feedback from over 65,000 global developers indicates that while the usage of generative AI in the software development industry continues to rise, developers' trust in this technology has significantly declined. The report highlights that the proportion of developers using AI tools has increased to 76% in 2024, while the favorability towards AI has dropped from 77% last year to 72%.
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The survey shows that most developers are not concerned about generative AI replacing their jobs; in fact, 70% of professional developers believe AI is not a threat. Ryan Polk, Chief Product Officer at Stack Overflow, stated that generative AI could inspire more people to enter the field of programming and even potentially increase the number of developers tenfold. He believes that AI programming tools can effectively assist developers in handling daily tasks, especially in reducing the time spent on boilerplate code, allowing developers to focus on more complex issues.
However, despite the rise in the usage of AI tools, developers are less confident in their accuracy. Only 43% of respondents expressed trust in the accuracy of AI tools. Major concerns among developers include the spread of misinformation, unclear attribution of sources, and biases due to a lack of diverse perspectives. In this regard, Stack Overflow believes that the knowledge within its community can help enhance trust in AI tools.
In the survey, 79% of developers identified misinformation as the main ethical issue related to AI. Polk emphasized that the quality of AI is entirely dependent on the accuracy of the input data, stating "garbage in, garbage out," hence the authenticity of data is crucial.
To address trust issues, Stack Overflow is collaborating with multiple AI suppliers to promote responsible data sharing. These collaborations aim to support the healthy development of AI technology by providing verified, trustworthy data.
Key Points:
✅ The proportion of developers using AI tools has reached 76%, but favorability has dropped to 72%.
🔒 Only 43% of developers trust the accuracy of AI tools, with misinformation being a major concern.
👩💻 70% of developers do not believe AI will threaten their jobs, seeing AI as a driver for increasing the number of developers.